Father of Melina Frattolin, the 9-year-old Canadian tourist found dead in NY, charged with murder

( NYPost )

The father of a 9-year-old Canadian tourist found dead in upstate New York was arrested early Monday and charged with her murder.

Luciano Frattolin was booked into Essex County Jail at 2:04 a.m. after his daughter, Melina, was found dead in shallow water in Ticonderoga near Lake George on Sunday afternoon.

The dad — who was accused of earlier filing a bogus kidnapping report — was charged with second-degree murder, officials announced.

Melina was first reported missing Saturday while her family was in the Lake George area.

It was earlier reported that she was in “imminent danger” of death after the New York State Police said she was last seen in a white van around 7:40 p.m. Saturday on I-87 near exit 22.

However, after her body was found late Sunday, investigators said there were no indications she had been abducted and that her father’s story contained inconsistencies, WRGB reported.

Frattolin, who was born in Ethiopia, is the founder of a Montreal-based company called Gambella Coffee, according to the company’s website.

He described his “beautiful” daughter as “the light of his life” and his “inspiration” in the bio on his company’s site.